1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a tuning device for a musical instrument. More particularly, the invention relates to an electronic tuning device having solid state components.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In a number of existing electronic tuning aids, a musician manually selects one of a number of internally generated audio frequency pitch standards for audible comparison with the instrument to be tuned. Other existing electronic tuning aids provide a visual comparison, via a strobe wheel, zero center meter or other visual readout device, between an internally generated reference pitch and the pitch of a musical note played by a musician and picked up by a microphone of the tuning aid. An improved electronic tuning aid that can operate alternatively or simultaneously in the audio and visual modes is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,952,625 to Peterson. The Peterson device, however, has a number of disadvantages which limit its usefulness. One disadvantage is that a particular pitch must be manually selected by means of a rotary switch on the tuning device. This precludes playing a series of unison pitches without the intrusion of unwanted intermediate pitches as the switch is rotated to the next desired pitch. Another disadvantage of the Peterson device is that is has only manual modes of operation, that is to say in both the audio and visual formats the user must manually set the rotary switch to each different pitch to which the instrument is to be tuned. This procedure is both time consuming and subject to occasional error.